Ecotech Marine XR15 Pro - Help !

[cobraz]

Light: Ecotech Marine Radion XR15 Pro
Mount: Ecotech mounting arm
Tank: Innovative Marine 40 Gallon 20" deep with a 3" and bed.
Doser: 20ml or Alk and Cal.
PH 8.12, ORP 350-400, Sal 1.024-1.026, Temp 79-80 degrees, O phos.
Cycle: 12:00pm on till 10:00pm = 10 hours
Set %: 1hour up to 50% and 1 hour down starting at 50%.
Skill level: 25 years in Reef tanks - very successful with Hards, SPS and LPS in the past.

ISSUE: Ok so now that you see the above here's the issue... I can not keep SPS to save my life in this tank with this light ... they always start to bleach from the bottom in a strip pattern to the top... no bugs no flatworms... it's crazy.

Can someone set me straight with this light.. and what to set it as - I have it on growth at 50% - I even tried A+B setting from the article that came out same issue. alk, cal and mag are fine - I do 5-6 gallons a week water change.

Tank is spotless no unwanted algae.. bio load is low in fish - just six.
Mix of LPS, SPS and Zoas..

Thanks for reading...

 

[jnw240reef]

Sounds like an alk issue. What is yours?

 

[akitareefer]

What are the nitrates, alk and cal? Looks like parameter issue. Possibly nitrates too high for sps? Everything else looks great

 

[Wilsoni]

Alk/temp swings are a possible culprit if no pests are found. It may just be the lighting of the photo but the stick appears to be browned out (high nutrients) opposed to bleached with STN occurring from the base upwards.

I'm curious as to where your nitrates currently register as well. What nutrient export methods do you have in effect?

You stated you have 25 years of experience in the hobby including success with SPS and LPS. What lighting were you using when you had success with SPS? Also how long have you had the XR15 above this tank?

 

[shadow1013]

Could be Alk and Cal but it could be flow or the lights. I'd see if you LFS has a PAR meter. I have XR15s on my Red Sea Reefer 450. Even at 100% my PAR didn't get above 150 towards the middle. I didn't check higher up since my rock doesn't go that high. I think SPS like about 300.

 

[cobraz]

Nitrates .05, Alk 9.5, Phosphate 0, Cal 410..

 

[cobraz]

My sps were 6"-10" below the water line to the tops of the sps.

 

[cobraz]

Alk/temp swings are a possible culprit if no pests are found. It may just be the lighting of the photo but the stick appears to be browned out (high nutrients) opposed to bleached with STN occurring from the base upwards.

I'm curious as to where your nitrates currently register as well. What nutrient export methods do you have in effect?

You stated you have 25 years of experience in the hobby including success with SPS and LPS. What lighting were you using when you had success with SPS? Also how long have you had the XR15 above this tank?

I had Ecoxotics before 7 strips in their fixture and never an issue like this... anybody else have this light..

Is 20ml of Alk and Cal through a doser at 8 hour intervals to much on a 40 gallon... ? Notice all the other corals are fine except Acros.

 

[Wilsoni]

I run an XR30 G3 Pro above a Nuvo Fusion 20 on the SPS AB+ program and have tremendous success with SPS. My nutrients are even higher than yours...

 

[nelson69]

Go slow on the alk no more thna one dkh up on a day.

 

[Wilsoni]

It's really tough to narrow it down to the exact cause of STN.

A few other questions come to mind...
What're you using for flow in the tank?
Aside from 2-part, what else do you dose?
Filter media?

 

[cobraz]

Main pump flow is a Hagen 70 400GPH
2 MP10s set at various flow patterns.

Not dosing anything else except coral food once a week.
Fish food 1 frozen cube a day.
Piece of 4" nori every other day.

Chemi pure elite - change 2 bags once every 3 -4 months.
Reactor tumbing Bio-pellets and a Refugium in back with Cheato on reverse light cycle for 8 hours.
Protien skimmer.

That's it - KISS.. system.

 

[reefwiser]

Have you checked the Par on your tank. I have the same tank and and light I run the intensity of the light at 35%. This gives me a Par of 375 at the top of my rock work and 120 par at the sand bend. I like you had corals dying after the first couple of weeks. I and I have been keeping SPS since 1991.
This is my first tank with LED's and the Ecotech xr30 light is great it is just really powerful and will end up killing corals. Once I adjusted my intensity to 35% I have gotten better success and corals coloring up and starting to grow.

 

[akitareefer]

Parameters and system sound great. Probably lighting issue. I peak my XR15 pro at 90% with a 20k high growth program, 18" off the water. Currently lighting 10 bta's and 1 chalice

 

[samba_dad]

Attached is my lighting profile for my 65g (36"x18"x24") tank using 2 XR15w pro lights along with my PAR readings from my Seneye. Notice I have intensity up to 85% and two of the units to get the PAR levels listed. I am wondering what your PAR levels would be for your 30 gal which I believe is shallower but just as wide.

 

[cobraz]

I do not have a par meter or access to one.... if anyone wants to rent one to me for a weekend that would great.. set lights to 30% and on color setting..fingers crossed.

 

[cobraz]

Talked to Ecotech Marine... I started at 70% lighting.. then was told to lower to 50% ..then I emailed a very worthy YouTube personality and he said lower to 25% .. Ecotech said move it back up to 80%. So now I am all the way back to 80% on A+B schedule. Will update on the results.

 

[reefwiser]

Will be doing a PAR reading on a club members tank today running the schedule will see what the readings are. 80% is pretty high unless you have a deep tank.

 

[Defective_Weeble]

There's absolutely no way I'd run that light at 80-% on a 20 inch deep tank. I have an XR15 over a 12 deep frag tank and run it at 35%. On my main display, a 4x2x2 120, I run 2x XR30s and it's taken me almost 6 months to get them up to 65%.

I'm going to take a wild guess and say you emailed Mark Callahan. If that's the case, and he told you 25%, trust him. Mark's a good friend of mine and even I thought he was full of crap when he told me to start at 35% on my 120. But I followed his lead with great success.

 

[cobraz]

There's absolutely no way I'd run that light at 80-% on a 20 inch deep tank. I have an XR15 over a 12 deep frag tank and run it at 35%. On my main display, a 4x2x2 120, I run 2x XR30s and it's taken me almost 6 months to get them up to 65%.

I'm going to take a wild guess and say you emailed Mark Callahan. If that's the case, and he told you 25%, trust him. Mark's a good friend of mine and even I thought he was full of crap when he told me to start at 35% on my 120. But I followed his lead with great success.

Yes... you are correct and so confused. Why would the manufacture tell me to go to 80%...you think they would know their light. I know Mark knows the equipment as he reviews items on a regular basis...but I was looking for someone who has this light not the 30s.

This should not be so hard to get a straight and correct answer.